


Starting Over

by natashasbanner



Series: Prompts [41]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-10-28
Packaged: 2019-07-23 11:44:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16158329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natashasbanner/pseuds/natashasbanner
Summary: Natasha visits the tower in the aftermath of SHIELD's demise and Bruce helps her realize there's nothing wrong with starting over.From the combined prompts: OMG HIII I LOVE YOUR BLOG<33 I've had this prompt idea for a while: bruce taking care of natasha's (was it shoulder?) wound after ca: the winter soldier. sort of pre-brucenat. lots of secret pining. idk, haha! Your writing is so inspiring and, just, flawless, omg. ty you so much for sharing your gift with us<3andI’m in love with your fics <3 Could I suggest you one? Bruce’s reaction about SHIELD = Hydra?





	Starting Over

**Author's Note:**

> This one is one of my favorite fics I've ever written. Please enjoy :)

“We’ve got company,” Tony said out of the blue, breaking the silence he and Bruce had been working in.   
  
Bruce looked around confused. “What?”   
  
“Romanoff’s on her way up,” he answered, tapping away at his tablet in the corner.   
  
“Why?”   
  
“Do you live under a rock?” Tony asked   
  
“This would be easier if you just told me what’s going on,” Bruce said, rolling his eyes at his eccentric friend.   
  
“Where’s the fun in that?”   
  
Bruce just sighed and gave Tony a look.   
  
“Have you seriously not been on the internet in the last two days?” He asked, not entirely joking. Bruce only shook his head.   
  
“For those of us living in the stone age, apparently HYDRA has been hiding inside SHIELD for decades and had this plan to take out millions of “threats”, but Cap and and Romanoff figured it out.” Tony explained pulling up the news coverage and swiping it over to the big screen in front of Bruce. “It looks like someone leaked SHIELD’s files too and I’m willing to bet it was our assassin buddy.”   
  
Bruce watched the video’s of a helicarrier leveling SHIELD’s headquarters and scanned a few articles with a mix of horror and awe. How had the world’s foremost intelligence agency been completely unaware of the parasite living within it for all these years?   
  
“Kind of ironic,” he commented with a humorless chuckle. “You said their files were leaked? Which ones?” he questioned, not sure he wanted to know. Bruce knew about the detailed file they kept on him and the Other Guy and he hated to imagine what would happen if anyone had access to that information.   
  
“All of them,” Tony said pulling up a search just to prove how easy someone could find whatever they wanted. “You can tell which one’s are SHIELD and which one’s aren’t but they’re all spreading like wildfire.”   
  
“No one’s going to care whose secrets they are,” Bruce muttered to himself as he looked away from the screen.   
  
Tony watched his friend for a moment before clearing his throat. “It looks like it’s all disappearing as fast as it’s showing up so I’d guess it’ll all be gone by the end of the week. But just to be safe…Jarvis?”   
  
“Already done,” the AI confirmed.   
  
“Good man.”   
  
“When will Agent Romanoff be joining us?” Bruce asked going back to his work to distract himself.   
  
“Uh, right now,” Tony said pointing through the glass walls of the lab to the elevator where Natasha was stepping onto the floor, looking a little worse for wear. “Be right back.”   
  
As Tony left the lab, Bruce took his place by the windows and watched Tony practically skip over to meet her. They exchanged a few words that Bruce couldn’t quite make out before Tony turned around to show her around.   
  
They disappeared from his line of sight and Bruce went back to his lab to continue start looking over the specs Tony had drawn up for a suit that could possibly stand a chance against the Other Guy. Bruce thought it was a longshot at best, but Tony was earnest that they could actually pull it off so he was willing to give it a shot.   
  
Bruce didn’t know how long he sat in his dimly lit lab, mulling over the holograms, but when a knock on the glass door pulled his attention away the sun had nearly set and all the lights in Tony’s lab were out and he was nowhere to be found. He turned around to find Natasha leaning on the door of his lab with a smirk.   
  
“Agent Romanoff,” he greeted politely, with a shy smile as he removed his glasses.   
  
“Bruce,” she returned, her eyes wandering around the lab. “You can call me Natasha, by the way.”   
  
“Natasha,” Bruce amended with a nod. “Is there a particular reason you’re here or are you just wandering?”   
  
She shrugged and Bruce noticed the brief flash of pain in her eyes. “I thought I’d have a look around, stop by and say hello.”   
  
“Tony’s tour didn’t go well I take it?” he asked with a short chuckle.   
  
“He shouldn’t quit his day job,” she responded, only half joking.     
  
The two stood in awkward silence for a moment before Natasha’s eyes swept over the state of the art lab once more.   
  
“Nice set up you got here,” she commented with an impressed whistle. “Lot of fancy toys.”   
  
Bruce rubbed the back of his neck as he looked around and shrugged. “Would you expect any less? Tony’s the one who set all of this up.”   
  
“I guess not,” she admitted with chuckle and stepped further into the lab. “What are you working on?”   
  
Bruce hesitated for a moment before he gestured for her to come closer and turned around to show her the hologram.   
  
“Tony thinks we can build a suit that could possibly contain the um, Other Guy,” he explained.   
  
Natasha studied the specs for the huge suit for a moment before looking over at Bruce. “You don’t sound convinced,” she commented.   
  
“It’s an excellent idea in theory, but practically I’m not sure it can be done.”   
  
“I’m sure you boys will figure it out,” she said and took another step closer to have a better look. “Seems kind of extreme, though don’t you think?”   
  
“It’s a worst case scenario measure, it’s supposed to be,” he said grimly.   
  
Natasha nodded but made no further comment. She watched Bruce tap around on a few screens before breaking the silence once more. “How’s it going to work?”   
  
Bruce glanced over at her with a raised eyebrow and Natasha looked at him expectantly. At that look he knew she was serious and began explaining the suit the way Tony first explained it to him. He immediately started describing all the features of the suit and how it would fit around Tony’s existing suit and the satellite that was apparently already in the works. He was so caught up in what he was saying and explaining the science behind it that he didn’t notice the way his gestures were getting a little wild. Without realizing how close Natasha was, Bruce turned to point something out on a different monitor and ended up hitting her square in her, unbeknownst to him, injured shoulder.   
  
Natasha groaned in pain as she bent over and reached out to steady herself with her good arm.   
  
“I’m sorry,” Bruce said as he instinctively reached a hand out to steady her, but pulled it back when he noticed the drops of blood on his knuckles. “Are…are you bleeding?”   
  
“Yeah,” she answered with a wince as she straightened up.   
  
“How long have you been bleeding?”   
  
“How long have I been here?”   
  
“Why didn’t you say anything when you came in?” he asked giving her a concerned look.   
  
“Must of slipped my mind,” she answered with a sarcastic chuckle. “Think you could patch me up?”   
  
“Of course. Give me a second.”   
  
Natasha watched as Bruce hurried out of the lab and out of sight. In his absence she pulled her black t-shirt over her head, with some difficulty and hopped up onto an empty counter. When Bruce returned he was carrying a large first aid kit.   
  
He paused momentarily when he noticed her sitting on the counter in a tank top, but he quickly recovered and crossed the lab to her. He set the kit down beside her before going over the wash his hands in the corner sink. She watched quietly as he donned a pair of gloves and took the supplies he would need out of the kit.   
  
When he had everything he needed set aside he stepped closer and examined the bandages haphazardly taped to the front and back of Natasha’s left shoulder. He met her eyes before her put a hand on her and she nodded minutely for him to begin. Without any further hesitation Bruce ripped the old, blood soaked bandages from her shoulder, apologizing when the tape took some tugging to get off.   
  
“Almost every stitch you have has been ripped out,” he noted as he looked over what was clearly a bullet wound. The wound looked a little infected and was slowly dripping blood, not form the wound itself but from where the stitches had torn through her skin.   
  
“I’ve had a busy week,” Natasha told him dismissively, shrugging her uninjured shoulder.   
  
Bruce made no comment. With what had happened with SHIELD he wasn’t all that surprised. He reached over and grabbed a small pair of scissors and tweezers to get rid of the useless stitches. He worked in silence, carefully removing the stitches while Natasha stared past him to the sunset outside.   
  
The silence in the room was broken by Bruce clearing his throat to get her attention. “After I flush the wound I’m going to start the sutures, do you want the anesthetic?”   
  
Natasha shook her head and Bruce raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”   
  
She tilted her head and raised a challenging brow and Bruce held up his hands in surrender.   
  
“If that’s what you want,” he muttered and went to work making sure the wound was clean. When he was sure the wound was clean, he gave her a shot of antibiotics to prevent further infection before opening the sterile package the sutures were in. “Last chance,” he said taking the instruments in his hands.   
  
“Just get it over with,” she told him, bracing for the initial needle prick.   
  
Bruce did as she said and carefully began the sutures to the entrance wound. “How did this happen? If you don’t mind me asking.”   
  
Natasha let out a long sigh and pushed her hair out of her face with her right hand. “It’s a long story, Doc.”   
  
“I’ve got time,” he told her, meeting her eyes for a moment before looking back at the stitches.   
  
“Everything I thought I knew has been turned upside down,” she admitted after several heartbeats. “Ghost stories are real, the good I thought I was working for has been a lie. I thought I was starting over and now I’ll have to do it all over again.”   
  
Bruce listened intently as he worked, “There’s nothing wrong with starting over,” he commented tying off the last suture and moving to the exit wound.   
  
Natasha was silent for a moment, mulling over Bruce’s words. Coming from someone who had been forced to leave behind everything he knew due to unforeseen circumstances, she was inclined to believe him. Ever since Fury sent her to recruit him he’d been slowly finding his place in the crazy world they lived in, and there was no reason she couldn’t do the same. It wasn’t like she had a choice in the matter. She was out of a job and dumped every alias she had on the internet.   
  
“Easier said than done,” she finally said barely above a whisper. “Besides, it won’t be long before the entire government comes looking for me.”   
  
“I take it you won’t be staying long then?” Bruce asked finishing up the last stitch and grabbing one of the fresh bandages.   
  
“Afraid not.”   
  
“I can’t say that I blame you, but I think Tony will be a little disappointed,” he told her, moving back around and picking up the other bandage.   
  
“Really?” Natasha asked in disbelief.   
  
“Yeah, he wants us all in one place. I’m not supposed to say anything but I’m pretty sure he’s working on upgrades for everyone’s suits and weapons.”   
  
“Don’t worry, I’ll be back,” she reassured him. “I just have a few loose ends to tie up in DC.”   
  
“Well, you’re all set,” Bruce said applying the last piece of medical tape to her shoulder. He snapped off his gloves and threw them in the pile with the rest of the waste.   
  
“Thanks,” Natasha said pulling the strap of her tank top back up and hopping down from the counter. “I should go. Good luck with all of this,” she told him gesturing around the lab.   
  
Bruce nodded his thanks and turned around to start cleaning up.   
  
“I’ll see you around,” she whispered and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder for a moment before taking her leave.   
  
When Bruce was sure she was out of earshot her whispered to himself.   
  
“I hope so.”


End file.
